The European Commission today launched a public consultation on strengthening EU measures to reduce emissions of fluorinated gases, a group of industrial gases which are extremely powerful contributors to global warming.

A Commission review, which was also adopted today, concludes that the EU's existing Regulation on fluorinated gases ('F-gases') is having a significant impact but that, without further measures, F-gas emissions are expected to remain at today's levels in the long term.

The review identifies wide scope for further cost-effective emission reductions, mainly due to the growing feasibility of replacing F-gases in several sectors with alternatives that make less or no contribution to climate change. Potentially the EU could eliminate up to two thirds of today's fluorinated gas emissions by 2030, it finds.